What's on in our museums
Come in out of the cold
We loved this review by a John Muir’s Birthplace visitor “We ended up here on a freezing January afternoon. What an excellent find - thoughtfully curated, warm and friendly. We got a real feel for John Muir's life and legacy, which has inspired us to learn more. Our daughter also enjoyed the little corners with books, toys, and activities to keep her occupied whilst we went around.”
Museums are warm, friendly and free to visit with regularly changing craft activities suitable for children and families as well as temporary exhibitions and reference books available to browse and read.
New exhibition
Visions of Haddington
National Library of Scotland
Friday 16 January to Thursday 2 April
Free admission
John Gray Centre - Museum, 15 Lodge Street, Haddington, EH41 3DX
An exhibition combining mixed media images by local illustrator Thomas Small, with artworks from our council collection. Dating from the 1700s to the present day, they show Haddington people and places and are brought to life with fascinating captions by Haddington’s History Society.
Flight disruption
Saturday 6 December to Saturday 31 January
Free admission
Wednesday to Saturday 10am to 5pm and Sunday 1pm to 5pm
John Muir’s Birthplace, High Street, Dunbar, EH42 1JJ
This exhibition is a collection of prints of wild British birds that are impacted by climate change. Climate change is affecting our birds in many ways: warming seas impact the food chain, rising sea levels change the geography of where birds can breed and lay eggs, bad weather can make it hard to find food and feed young and extreme temperatures can make survival difficult. Numbers of British birds are predicted to fall drastically over the coming years. The exhibition features original, hand-pulled, linocut prints of birds seen along the coast of East Lothian. Many of the birds featured are impacted in some way by climate change and are either on the red or amber list of the BTO Birds of Conservation Concern in the UK.
Winter season museum opportunities
Explore historic records and online exhibitions at johngraycentre.org
Revisit past exhibitions from John Muir’s Birthplace jmbt.org.uk
Explore the paths around Prestongrange Museums using the mobile phone tour as a guide through 400 years of local industry. eastlothian.gov.uk/prestongrange
Take a tour of Dunbar Town House Museum and Gallery with Dunbar and District History Society on a Saturday afternoon. eastlothian.gov.uk/dunbar-town-house
East Lothian Council Museums
15 Lodge Street, Haddington, EH41 3DX.
Thursday and Friday 10am to 1pm and 2pm to 5pm
Saturday 10am to 1pm and 2pm to 4pm
126 High Street, Dunbar, EH42 1JJ.
Wednesday to Saturday 10am to 5pm
Sunday 1pm to 5pm
High Street, Dunbar, EH42 1ER.
Wednesday to Sunday 1pm to 5pm
(from Wednesday 2 April to Sunday 28 September)
Morrison’s Haven, Prestonpans, EH32 9RX.
Wednesday to Sunday 11am to 4.30pm
(from Wednesday 2 April to Sunday 28 September)
School Road, North Berwick, EH39 4JU.
Wednesday to Saturday 11am to 4pm
(from Wednesday 9 April to Saturday 25 October)
65 High St, Musselburgh, EH21 7BZ.
Thursday to Saturday 10.30am to 4pm
(from Thursday 3 April to Saturday 27 September)